Meet Recap: 2023 NCAA DIII Indoor T&F Championships

Champions were crowned – and records were broken – at the 2023 NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships in Birmingham, Alabama!

CLICK HERE TO VISIT NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS CENTRAL

UW-La Crosse swept the team titles in thrilling fashion, while athletes from all teams assaulted the record book throughout the proceedings.

2023 NCAA DIII Indoor T&F Championships – Final Standings
Men’s Teams	Score	Women’s Teams	Score
UW-La Crosse	35	UW-La Crosse	59.5
MIT	34.5	Washington (Mo.)	54
Loras	32	Loras	40.5
SUNY Geneseo	32	Johns Hopkins	33
UW-Oshkosh	31	Mount Union	32

Men’s Recap

UW-La Crosse is probably sick of these closes finishes at the NCAA DIII Indoor Track & Field Championships – but if they stand on top of the podium, all’s well that ends well. The Eagles eked out a 0.5-point victory over MIT and won their 17th national title in program, first since they tied North Central (Ill.) back in 2017.

It wouldn’t have been as close if UW-La Crosse wasn’t DQ’d from the meet-ending 4×400 relay due to a lane violation. The Eagles finished runner-up in the event to SUNY Geneseo, as both foursomes went under the former meet record (in addition to three others).

UW-La Crosse built enough a cushion in the 16 events before the 4×400 relay to still be victorious. The Eagles scored in seven events, including a pair of national titles from Sam Blaskowski in the 60 meters and Ethan Gregg in the 3000 meters. Gregg set a meet record of 8:01.23 and led eight other men under the previous best. Blaskowski later finished runner-up in the 200 meters to double-champion Cheickna Traore of Ramapo, who set a meet record in that event not long after winning the 400 meters.

MIT had a pair of national champions, too: Ryan Wilson completed his coronation in the mile with a meet-record 4:02.62; Kenneth Wei won the long jump with a mark of 7.39m (24-3). Wei also added eight points to the Engineers’ total with a runner-up effort in the 60-meter hurdles.

Loras and SUNY Geneseo tied with 32 points, followed by UW-Oshkosh with 31.

Women’s Recap

Four points.

That’s all UW-La Crosse needed to score in the meet-ending 4×400 to seize its second national title in program history – first since 2017. The Eagles, who were the top-ranked team going into Birmingham, Alabama, had their hands full with Washington (Mo.). UW-La Crosse and WashU both qualified teams into the 4×400. Speak about drama.

Well, the Eagles finished fourth, one spot behind the Bears. That gave UW-La Crosse five points and the national title. The only way WashU could have jumped the Eagles in the team standings was with a win in the 4×400.

UW-La Crosse scored in nine different events. Skye Digman provided 18 points to the Eagles’ total with a victory in the shot put and a runner-up effort in the weight throw. Emma Lawrence compiled 14 points thanks to a second-place run in the 60-meter hurdles and a third-place showing in the 200.

Points came in bunches for the Bears, too. WashU, which saw top-8 athletes in eight events, came within striking distance of UW-La Crosse following a 1-2 sweep in the 800 by Emma Kelley and Aoife Dunne. Only three events remained after the 800: the 200, the 3000 and the 4×400.

Loras, Johns Hopkins and Mount Union were third, fourth and fifth in the team standings, respectively.

Quick Hits From The Meet

Records On Records

Eleven meet records were set over the weekend.

Read that again: 11.

w60H – Birgen Nelson, 8.39
m200 – Cheickna Traore, 20.72
m800 – Mike Jasa, 1:49.30
mMile – Ryan Wilson, 4:02.62
wMile – Annika Urban, 4:43.17
m3000 – Ethan Gregg, 8:01.23
w3000 – Fiona Smith, 9:25.62.
m5000 – Christian Patzka, 13:47.01
m4x400 – SUNY Geneseo, 3:11.64
w4x400 – Rochester (N.Y.), 3:44.84
mDMR – SUNY Geneseo, 9:48.39
wTJ – Victoria Kadiri, 13.18m

Nine was a special number, as that many men and that many teams went under the previous all-time best in both the 3000 and DMR. Imagine turning in a faster mark than anybody in meet history before that year and finishing ninth.

Total Domination Complete

Take a quick glance at the NCAA DIII charts in the weight throw – both all-time and this season – and you’ll see one common name: Joseph White. (Seriously, though: White had seven of the top-10 throws in NCAA DIII history and 19 of the top-20 in 2023 entering this weekend.)

The Carthage standout dominated the event throughout the indoor campaign, culminating in a jaw-dropping performance at the NCAA Championships on Friday. White launched three of his five legal marks 21.13m (69-4) or farther, including a 21.41m (70-3) howitzer in Round 2 that sent him to the national title and gave him the second-farthest throw in meet history (and three of the top-4 marks).

One Race; One Record

Sam Blaskowski already had the NCAA DIII record in the 60 meters.

Blaskowski added the meet record to his ledger on Friday afternoon.

The UW-La Crosse standout went 6.67 in the prelims to take down the former all-time best of 6.68 set by Thurgood Dennis of UW-Eau Claire back in 2014. You might remember that Dennis’ meet record doubled as the divisional record, so Blaskowski unseated him from both.

Blaskowski, who will compete in the final on Saturday morning at 10:55 am CT, owns four of the top-5 fastest marks in NCAA DIII history, including his chart-topping 6.65 from the WIAC Indoor Championships.

Later in the meet, Blaskowski went under the meet record in the 200 meters in qualifying with the second-fastest time in the prelims behind Cheickna Traore of Ramapo. Traore holds the meet record (for now) at 21.17, followed by Blaskowski at 21.20.

A Record, By A 5000-Meter Name

It took NCAA DIII athletes 29 years to catch up to Dan Mayer.

Well, they didn’t just catch him in 2023 – they blew past him.

In a year that Mayer’s NCAA DIII record in the 5000 meters fell twice in the same day, his meet record was on borrowed time. That time was Friday night, as Christian Patzka of UW-Whitewater won the NCAA title in 13:47.01. to shatter Mayer’s best of 13:53.17 that he set back in 1994.

Alex Phillip of John Carroll, who set the current NCAA DIII record of 13:44.98 just hours after Patzka first went under it, finished runner-up in 13:52.29 to dip under Mayer’s standard as well.